Means for insulating rail-joints.



B. G. BRANE.

MEANS FUR INSULATING RAIL JOINTS.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 20, 1912.

Patented Dec. 24, 1912.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

Sme/who@ f Effraj/f fzfze B. G. BRAINE.

MEANS POR INSULATING RAIL JOINTSA APPLICATION FILED JULYZO, 1912.

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B. Gl BRAINE.

MEANS FOR INSULATING RAIL JOINTS.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 20, 1912.

Patented Dec. 24, '1912 3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

WITNESSE )rrno sTaTES enfrenta OFFICE.

'BANcRoFr e. RRain'n'or :New YORK, N. Y., AssiGNoR 'ro THE RAIL yLTOINT COMPANY, or YORK, N. A CORPORATION or NRW YORK.

i Manns Fon 4.nvsminmnvo RAIL-JOINTS.

To (il/ly fic/unay 'uf ma concer/1,

Be it known that l, tLiNCuoiv'r G. llinxinii, a citizen of the United States, residing atl New York, in the county ot New York and g State of New York, have invented certain; new and useful Improvements in hileans lor ing is a specitication. ,Y

This invention relates to insulation Vfor rail joints `oi" theinsulated type, and. more Insulating Rail-Joints, oit' whichfthe followp'articularly to that character oi rail joint insulation known as divided-libeiff wherefin the insulation is in t-Wo parts, respectively for the head and base flange portions of the rails, whereby a minimum amount oit insulatinggr material may be used'to the best advantage both. electrically and ineeli'aii.1-;

'.cally, and adn'iittii'ug3 ol the ready removal of worn-out pieces oft' insulation without disturbing or affecting the remaining good or unwoi'ii insulation.

It .is well known that the insulating nur'V .terial of .an insulated rail joint usually wears' out much uiore rapidly under thel head ot' the rail than at the base tliereo't, i

and-such insulation, therefore, usually re qunes 'frequent renewal..

Accordi1igly,one of the principal objects oit the invention is to provide a novel ai"A rangement ot the insulating material ink a y divided-liber rail joint, wherein'that part of the. insulation which is subject to the` most rapid wear is readily removable and replaceable without disturbing or atl'ectiiig y the remaining` portions ot' good, or uiiworn insulation, thus involving' the most ecoA noinical conditions 't'or niainlenaiu-e and re pair,v

A "turtlier and distinctive object of` the 'invention is tov provide a novel dispositimi' of the head sections ot insulation, 'outside of the joint bars, whereby thc same are rendered most readily accessible :tor purposes of removal and replacement with the least possible disturbance of the joint parts, while g at the same timeproviding effectual n'icaus for thoroughly insulating' the joint at the under sides of the rail heads, as well as between the outer faces ot the joint bars and? the bolt heads. j Well understood by those ian'riliar with the art that, in insulated rail joints a more or lesszt'requent source of trouble arises from the'i'netal washers or the heads and nuts of the bolts comin?.f in cont-.ict with `tlie lower Specification of Letters Patent.

ln this connection, it' is.

Patented Dec". 24, 1912.

i llange part of the angle bar, and at times causing current leakage or breakdown to the electric circuits, this trouble being eX perienced particularly in connection with small rails havin short fishings aces. But, 00

by reason of tile novel outsi e arrange.

ment of insulating material, as contemplated by the present invention, this diffii culty is not only corrected but effectually ,prevented With these and many other objects in view which will more readily a pear as the details 'of the invention are 'Iiilly 'underi' stood, the same consists in the novel conl, struction; combination, and varrangement of parts hereinafter more fully described, illustrated, and claimed.

lliough susceptible of embodiment in vai rious types oit rail joints, and adapt-able for nia y be employed in an insulated rail joint, three practical embodiments of the invention are shown for illustrative purposes inv the accompanying' drawings, in wh1ch Figure 1 is a side elevation of an insu- 80 lated rail joint embodying the improved inj sulation, in accordance with the present inventio'n. Fig. Q is a central, vertical, cross ysectional view of the joint illustrated in Fig'. 1. Fig'. 3 is an elevation of the im- 85 'provcd liber head piece herein termed the `head section of: insulation for the joint. l Fig. ilis a side elevation of a modification ot the' joint, illustrating the invention embodied in a construction wherein bolt straps 90 or plates are employed instead of the metal washers shown in Figs. 1 and 2 of the draw- .ii'igs, the view illustratingithe bolts in section and tue nuts removed. Fig. 5 is a cross sectional view of the modified joint illustratcd in Fig. fl, the section being taken on the line 5-'5 of Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is a side elevation ot' another modification of the inventiou, wherein the head section of insu# bolts, and also illustrating the application ot the invention toa' one end insulated joint lwlicrein the ber head piece only extends l 'one half the length of the joint and is asso- Fig. 7 is a cross sectional view of the modi- 4 lication on the line/'f--7 of Fig. 6.

Like. reference/s designate corresponding parts in the several lfigures of the drawings.

use with any form of joint baror splice that 75` lation does not .extend below the line of joint` elated withy a corresponding .metal filler.

The improved" insulating meting-forming the subject matter of this` application, are intended to be vv,applicable to various kinds` of ralilf'oint's, and hence available for use with fis plates, plain angle bars, joint bars of t e continuous type, channel bars, or any oft e divers forms of splices which connect the [rails and extend across the joint between thein. In all of its applications, the invention possesses the same utility and subserves sbars 1, theusual joint bolts 2, which are insulated from vthe joint bars by any of the approvedbolt insulating expedients, such as the bolt insulation 2a shown in the drawings, any insulating end post 3 between the' rail ends, and divided or two part insulationf between the rails and' the joint bars. This dividedor. two partl insulation comprises an `upper 'head section of insulation 4, and ay lower lbase section-of insulation 5.

The sections of insulation' e and 5 are made of the usualliber sheets, or'other insulating inateriah'and each of the same may entend the entire length of the joint or be of less extent, without ade'cting the im-V roveinents claimed herein. l

3 Though appl'cable to variousr kinds of railjoint bars, 'the improvements in Figs. 1 and Qare illustrated as preferably associated with joint bars of the well known continu- 1 nous type which include splice members fitting the shing spaces of therails and the integral rail supporting base sections'B undeilying the bases of the rails. Accordingly, inthe illustrated embodiment ofthe in en tion, thelower or base sect-ion of insulation l5 isshown ,as being in the form of an insulating-cuff fitted overthe base flange of. the rails, and having portions interposed y between the splice member ofthe'joint bar the. upper .side of the rail flanges, and

y beneath the under sides of the latter and the upperside of. the base section or base plate.

As'shown, the base section of insulation 5 also usually includes at its inner edge ain upstanding iiange'portion 6 arranged nent to the A.webs of the railsA to eft'ectually insulate the bottom inside corners ofthe jointl bars from the rails.

Accordingl to the present invention, theupper-tor head section of insulation e occupies agposition on the outside of the joint bars. 'That is tosay, in a jointof the type intensa illustrated, each of the joint bars has arranged upon the outer side thereof a separate renewabhJ head sect-ion of-insulation 4e. This section of insulation extends over the outer face of the bar and is provided at its upper edge with an inwardly .extending head fiange 7 adapted to constitutetheinsulating separatforbetween the under sides of the rail heads and thelupper edge of thefjoint'bar.

Also, in addition to the head flange 7 at the top thereof, the sheet of insulation .4,i`n the embodiment shown in Figs, 1, 2 and 3, is provided at its lower edge with an out turned apron extension 8 which tsinto the out-side lower corner of the joint bar and projects a sufficient distance below the line of the bolts to prevent the heads and nuts thereof or the metal washers from coming into an electrical contact with the lower partv of the joint bar.

'In its preferred application, the head s'ection of insulation et is provided inits web with a plurality of keeper notches 9 'that engage over the bolts 2, thus providing a direct interlock between the insulation and .the bolts -which prevents longitudinal creeping or displacement of the insulation. Also.v by reason ofthe arrangement of the head sections of insulation upon the out-er sides of the joint bars, such insulation is clamped and retained inA place by the heads and nuts of the bolts, or by interposed Washers, bind ing against t-he same. n this connectiomit will be observed that 't 1e mere loosening'v of the bolts, and the removal thereof, permits tion at either orboth sides of the j'ointwith ythe greatest facility, and without removing` cation that may be vresortedv to inthis parv ticular' is shown, in Figs. 4 vand .5I of the drawings,wher`ein bolt straps 11 are substituted for the individual washers 10. Also.

Figs.- 4 and '5 of the dra-wings suggest.l a further modification of the invention in the' particular of omitting the bottom apron ex-l tensions 8 ofthe insulation sheets.

'Further modifications that may be' v resorted to in carrying out the invention are suggested in Figs. 6 and 7 of the drawings. As illustrated' in these figures of the drawings, the outside head sectionof insulation e may be in the form of a strip of insulating material, of relatively narrow width, so that the saine does not extend below the line of the joint bolts'.y This strip of insulating material is disposed above the line of the 100. of the renewal of the head sections of insulaipaaasa,

interlocking engagement with washers 13, either metal or fiber, which are arranged between the outer faces of the joint bars and the inner side of the metal clamping .ineinbers which lie behind the heads and nuts of the bolts. These metal clamping members may be either the metal washers 10, such as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, or may be the metal bolt straps 11. which are shown in said Figs. 6 and 7. Also, it will be observed that the washers or equivalent elements 13 arranged about the bolts and interlocked with the fiber' strip la may conveniently be the fiber washer of the bolt insulation shown, and which consists of said washer and a bolt ferrule or sleeve.

The modified structure shown in Figs. 6 and 7 of the drawings, the interlocking of the fiber head piece` o r section 4 with the joint bolts, through the indirect connection described, 4prevents longitudinal displacement of sa1d head piece or section, at the same time not interfering with the clamping or binding engagement thereof by the clamping element ot' plate 11. Furthermore, Figs. 6 and 7 of the drawings illustrate the application of the invention to joint bars l of the common an le bar type and also show the adaptation o the invention to a one end insulation of the joint, wherein the fiber section or head piece 4 'extendsonly halt the length of the joint,

and has associated therewith, at the same side of the joint, a corresponding metal ller piece 4b. This metal filler piece is of the same construction and mounted in the same manner as `the corresponding fiber head i piece 4a at the saine side of the joint.

I wish it to be understood that I do not confine my invention to the various details of construction described, as other modifica tionsI and changes in the form, proportion,

Vand minor details of construction may be resorted to wlthout departing :from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages ot the invention.

I claim:

1. In an insulated rail joint, the rails, a joint bar, and ahead section of insulation removablyr clamped upon the outer side of the bar and engaging beneath the rail heads.

2. In an insulated rail joint, the rails., a joint bar, and a section of insulation ren1ovably clamped upon the outer side of the joint bar.

3. In an insulated rail joint, the rails, a

joint bar, and a section of insulation removably clamped upo'n the outside of the joint bar and interlocked with the joint bolts.

4. In aninsulated rail joint, the rails, a joint bar, and a head section of insulation removably held by the joint bolts upon the out-side ot the bar and engaging beneath the rail heads.

5. ln an insulated rail joint, the rails,.a joint bar, and a section otinsulation removably held by the joint bolts upon the outside ot the bar.

6. ln an insulated rail joint, the rails, the joint bar, and a section of insulation ar ranged upon the outside ot the bar and detachablv interloelnul with the joint bolts and ada ted to be clamped by the heads or. ends of t e bolts.

7. In an insulated rail. joint, the rails, a joint bar, and a head sectionjof insulation arrangedu 'on the outside of the bar and detaehably interlocked with the joint bolts;

8. In an insulated rail joint, the rails, the joint bar, and a section of insulation arranged upon the outside 'of the bar and detachably inter-locked with the joint bolts and ada ted to be clamped by the heads or ends of tlie bolts.

9. In an insulated rail joint, the rails, a joint bar, and a head section of insulatioi. arranged upon lthe outside of the joint bar and loosely intel-locked with the joint bolts, said insulation engaging beneath the rail heads and ada ted to be clamped by the heads or nuts o the bolts.

10. In an insulated rail joint, the rails, a joint bur, a head section of insulation arranged. upon the outside of the joint bar and having an upper head flange adapted to engage beneath the rail heads, and a lower apron extension arranged as an insulating separator between the lower part of the bar and the heads or nuts ofthe bolts.

11. ln a divided-fiber insufatedail joint, the rails, a jointbar, and separate head and base sections of insulation respectively ar ranged upon the outer and inner sides of the bar, the head section of insulation being retained in place by the bolts and ,nfxided with a head llange engaging beneath the rail 

